Mu Zhe suddenly felt a chill run down his spine. He looked back in confusion.
Shen Feng Xue asked calmly, "What's wrong?"
Mu Zhe stood in a grave mound, a small wooden sword in his hand. Sweat beaded on his forehead. He shook his head slightly. "Nothing, just a little cold."
Shen Feng Xue sat cross-legged in the shade beside a boulder. He gently raised his hand, and a jet-black raven perched on his wrist, tilting its head to look at him.
Shen Feng Xue flicked his finger slightly. Startled, the raven took flight and disappeared into the dark sky.
"Come here," he said.
Mu Zhe was overjoyed. He put away the small wooden sword and happily jumped into Shen Feng Xue's arms.
Shen Feng Xue opened his cloak and gently wrapped it around Mu Zhe, who was sitting in his lap. His gaze was unfocused as he stared at the grave mound ahead, lost in thought.
Mu Zhe raised his head slightly and whispered, "Master, why should I learn sword techniques? Senior Brother Sanshui said that if I don't enter the Dao, even if I learn sword techniques, it will be useless."
Shen Feng Xue said calmly, "Just learn them; you'll need them later."
Mu Zhe trusted his master completely and nodded heavily, "Yes! A-Zhe will learn them well!"
Shen Feng Xue lowered his eyes, his slender fingers gently stroking Mu Zhe's soft hair, a gentleness hidden deep within his cold eyes that no one else could perceive.
Mu Zhe wiggled his small feet and began his daily routine of asking, "Master, when can we get out?"
Shen Feng Xue's hand paused, and after a long while, he softly said, "Isn't it good here?"
Mu Zhe looked at him blankly, "There's nothing here, just abandoned graves. What's good about it?"
Shen Feng Xue spoke in a language Mu Zhe didn't understand, "We can't get out, and they can't get in."
"Who are they?"
Shen Feng Xue said, "The ones who want to kill you."
Mu Zhe was startled and quickly turned and threw himself into his master's arms.
He said, aggrieved, "A-Zhe is so obedient, why would anyone want to kill me?"
Shen Feng Xue's soft fingertips caressed the scarlet birthmark on Mu Zhe's face, and he said softly, "Yes, why would they want to kill you? Clearly..."
Mu Zhe: "Master?"
Shen Feng Xue's eyes, hidden beneath his icy robes, seemed to be brewing a violent storm. He said coldly, "Clearly, it was their doing."
Mu Zhe was confused, reaching out to grab his collar, murmuring, "Master, what are you saying?"
From then on, for ten years at the Burial Mound, Shen Feng Xue never uttered those words that left Mu Zhe bewildered.
Sixteen-year-old Mu Zhe's body had grown, and he couldn't even muster a trace of spiritual energy, yet he practiced the sword techniques Shen Feng Xue had taught him day after day for ten years.
Every time he practiced his sword, Shen Feng Xue would stand not far away in white robes, watching him with dim eyes.
The white-robed immortal existed in his own little world, incongruous with the surrounding filthy tombs. The ever-burning lamp on Liren Peak illuminated the perpetually dark, abandoned sword mound, casting a thin layer of warm light around him, as if he might vanish into thin air at any moment.
Mu Zhe finished his daily sword practice and turned back, as usual, his gaze gentle as he looked at Shen Feng Xue, hoping to gain his master's praise.
Shen Feng Xue, however, only looked at him, saying nothing.
Mu Zhe sheathed his sword, quickly ran over, lowered his head slightly, and whispered, "Master, how did A-Zhe's practice go?"
He waited for praise, head bowed.
Seeing his expression, Shen Feng Xue suddenly smiled for some reason.
Mu Zhe looked up in astonishment.
This was the first time he had ever seen his master smile.
Shen Feng Xue gently raised his hand and stroked his head, saying, "You've practiced very well."
Mu Zhe was so flattered by the praise that he almost flew away, wishing he could immediately perform another set of sword moves.
Shen Feng Xue's hand gradually moved downwards, slowly tracing the hideous, scarlet birthmark on Mu Zhe's face. After a moment's pause, he suddenly asked, "A-Zhe, do you want to go out?"
Mu Zhe tilted his head, gently rubbing against Shen Feng Xue's palm, and said in a coquettish tone, "I'll listen to Master. If Master tells me to go out, I'll go out."
During the ten years in the Burial Mound, Mu Zhe had almost become accustomed to this life of arduous training. As long as Shen Feng Xue was by his side, he didn't care where he went.
Shen Feng Xue stroked his face and said, "Okay."
He gently leaned closer to Mu Zhe: "Open your mouth."
Mu Zhe instinctively obeyed. Just as he parted his lips, he felt Shen Feng Xue place something into his mouth.
"Swallow it."
Mu Zhe was confused, but still swallowed the object.
"What is this?" Mu Zhe asked curiously after swallowing it.
Shen Feng Xue said calmly, "Something that can save your life."
After he finished speaking, his figure faded slightly. Mu Zhe quickly reached out to grab him, but his hand grasped at empty air.
Mu Zhe exclaimed in horror, "Master!"
Shen Feng Xue's features were exquisite, his hair ribbon fluttering slightly in the wind. He said, "The Burial Mound's barrier breaks every ten years. In five days, Su Xiyan will come to repair the barrier. I will come then to take you out."
Mu Zhe was bewildered: "Five days?"
Shen Feng Xue's gaze softened unusually. He looked at Mu Zhe and said softly, "Wait for me."
With that, his figure suddenly vanished from the spot.
Mu Zhe's pupils contracted, and he lunged forward with outstretched arms, but grasped nothing, stumbling and falling to the ground.
At the same time, the thing inside his abdomen seemed to ignite, slowly spreading throughout his limbs and bones, burning intensely. Soon, Mu Zhe was drenched in sweat from the pain, unable even to groan.
The pain continued; Mu Zhe nearly rolled on the ground in agony, but the moment he moved, he felt someone tightly embrace him.
He opened his eyes abruptly, and the first thing he saw was his master's handsome face.
Mu Zhe stammered, "Master."
Shen Gurong glared at him and said, "You dare to be distracted during the tribulation? Are you courting death?"
Mu Zhe lost track of time. Seeing Shen Gurong's expression, as if he had finally found his home after years of wandering, a glint of light flashed in his eyes. He suddenly lunged forward, pinning Shen Gurong to the ground, burying his face in his neck and sobbing, "Master, you said you'd wait for me."
Shen Gurong: "???"
The heavenly lightning continued, but the boy undergoing the tribulation had gone completely mad.
Shen Gurong was furious. He slapped Mu Zhe on the head, yelling, "What's wrong with you?! Prepare for the tribulation!"
But Mu Zhe's consciousness remained immersed in those inexplicable memories. As the lightning bolts struck one after another, those memories grew faster and faster.
Mu Zhe watched as if he were reading a storybook, his gaze fixed on "himself" struggling and writhing in the dimly lit burial mound for three days. The excruciating pain transformed his initial screams of agony into deep, muffled groans.
Finally, his consciousness was awakened by the sound of shattering glass.
Slowly raising his head, the sky, shrouded in darkness for ten years, seemed to crack open, letting light flood the perpetually dark burial mound, stinging Mu Zhe's eyes.
Tears streamed down Mu Zhe's face as he struggled to his feet, gripping the wooden sword.
Someone emerged slowly from the light.
For a moment, Mu Zhe instinctively thought it was Shen Feng Xue coming to take him away.
But before he could feel any joy, Yu Xinghe's harmless face appeared before him.
"Junior Brother, give me the thing Master gave you."
Mu Zhe knew nothing, and had no idea what Yu Xinghe was talking about.
"What is it?"
"Junior Brother is still playing dumb." Yu Xinghe chuckled, his eyes crinkling, as if he were still the child from his youth, clutching his sleeve, tears welling in his eyes, asking why their master disliked him. "Ten years ago, Master went so far as to sacrifice half of his yuandan to have Senior Brother Sanshui send him to the Burial Mound. Naturally, he was entrusting that thing to you."
Mu Zhe: "What?"
"Back then, Senior Brother Sanshui trespassed into the Burial Mound and was severely injured by a demonic cultivator, losing his life in the process," Yu Xinghe said. "Junior Brother, you don't know anything about this, do you?"
Mu Zhe stumbled back a few steps, stunned. "Senior Brother Sanshui... is dead?"
Yu Xinghe was too lazy to exchange pleasantries. He drew his sword and coldly said, "Hand over the divine artifact, and I'll spare your life out of consideration for our brotherhood."
Mu Zhe's mind was a complete mess. He clutched his head, his face contorted in pain, and retreated relentlessly, but Yu Xinghe pursued him like a madman.
Sword light flashed, and someone seemed to be whispering something in his ear. Mu Zhe couldn't hear clearly, but Yu Xinghe heard it perfectly.
"Your entire nation perished, yet even a sliver of spiritual power from the divine artifact that Shen Feng Xue possesses could save your entire country," a deep voice said softly, its tone full of seduction. "And he, he gave the artifact to Mu Zhe, simply so that he could cultivate immortality."
"Tsk tsk, how unfair. You and Mu Zhe are both his disciples."
Yu Xinghe's grip on his sword tightened abruptly, and a crimson glint gradually appeared in his amber pupils.
"How ironic, the lives of your entire kingdom are no match for a piece of trash."
"What are you waiting for? Kill him!"
"You dared to trespass into the forbidden area, are you afraid of adding the crime of harming your fellow disciples?"
"Kill him, seize the divine artifact, and I can easily lead you out of Liren Peak. The power of the artifact will surely reverse the fate of your entire kingdom."
"By the way, I can also capture Shen Feng Xue and let you do as you please."
Yu Xinghe, as if possessed, murmured repeatedly, "Leave him to me...to do as I please?"
"Yes," the demonic cultivator said lazily, "I know where he is in seclusion. He has lost half of his yuancore, he is no match for me. As long as I go out, I can definitely capture him alive."
Yu Xinghe, as if grasping at some hope, swung his sword at Mu Zhe like a madman, his pupils suddenly turning completely crimson.
One thought leads to demonic possession.
“Fine.” Yu Xinghe’s long hair flew wildly, his pupils bloodshot, his face contorted with madness. “As long as I can kill Shen Feng Xue, as long as I can…”
As long as he could kill Shen Feng Xue, as long as those heartless eyes that had never truly looked at him could finally look at him properly, what did it matter if he betrayed his master and ancestors?
The demonic cultivator laughed, his chains shattering and crashing to the ground like rain.
His appearance was monstrous, his pupils bloodshot. He seemed impervious to pain as he ripped Lin Xia Chun from his chest and casually tossed him aside.
Before him stood Yu Xinghe, now bewitched and possessed, and Mu Zhe, half-covered in blood and barely alive.
Memories flashed by.
Mu Zhe, longsword in hand, slowly pierced Yu Xinghe’s heart.
Yu Xinghe grinned maliciously, gripping Mu Zhe's wrist tightly, struggling as he said, "...If you're not afraid of death, go search now. Before the snow covers his body, you might still find it."
Mu Zhe slammed him against a boulder with a loud crash, nearly crushing Yu Xinghe's neck.
"You...it's impossible," Mu Zhe gritted his teeth. "Why did you do this? Your master has never held a grudge against you. Your country was slaughtered, and instead of blaming those who wielded the sword, you blame those who refused to save you? By what right?! They had no obligation to save you whatsoever."
Yu Xinghe, blood trickling from his lips, laughed, "Then why did he save you? We entered the sect at the same time. I'm clearly better than you in every way, yet I'm inferior to you in every aspect. I want to ask, why?"
Yu Xinghe had been jealous since childhood. He and Mu Zhe had both entered Shen Feng Xue's sect, but he had never received a single glance from Shen Feng Xue.
Over the years, Yu Xinghe clearly remembered that Shen Feng Xue had only spoken one sentence to him.
That day, he went to find Shen Feng Xue with great joy, wanting to give his master the fire spirit stone he had bought with countless spirit stones. To avoid his master forgetting, he even carved a crooked "Yu" on the spirit stone with trembling little hands.
When he arrived at Fanjiang Residence, Shen Feng Xue was supporting Mu Zhe's wrist from behind, teaching him to practice calligraphy.
Yu Xinghe's smile vanished for a moment, then brightened again. He stepped forward joyfully and bowed, "Xinghe greets Master."
Shen Feng Xue's cold eyes seemed to hold only one person. He kept his gaze fixed on Mu Zhe in his arms, not even glancing at Yu Xinghe, merely nodding casually.
Yu Xinghe was long accustomed to Shen Feng Xue's indifferent nature and didn't back down. He held the delicate little box, saying, "Xinghe heard that Master is sensitive to the cold, so I found a fire spirit stone. I hope Master will accept it."
Shen Feng Xue finally raised his eyes, but only glanced at the box with an unwavering expression before coldly saying, "No need, take it back."
Yu Xinghe, who was smilingly preparing to open the box, froze.
No need, take it back.
He didn't want the fire spirit stone that could dispel the cold, but he treasured the grass ring that Mu Zhe clumsily wove from the grass stems.
How could there be such a stark difference in this world?
That day, Yu Xinghe couldn't even remember when he returned to Changying Mountain, yet he still remembered Shen Feng Xue's gaze, as if looking at a lifeless object.
As Yu Xinghe spoke, his pupils became somewhat unfocused. In that instant, it was as if he had snatched back the last vestige of clarity from somewhere, his pupils staring blankly into the void, his voice hoarse as he murmured.
"Clearly, Xinghe respected him so much."
"But why, no matter how hard I try, can he not see me?"
"Junior Brother." Yu Xinghe gently grasped Mu Zhe's sleeve, two lines of tears slowly streaming down his scarlet eyes. He cried, "Did I do badly? Was I not diligent enough? I spent my entire life desperately trying to gain his praise, but why..."
Yu Xinghe finally ran out of strength. His hand slowly fell to his sides, his pupils slightly dilated, and with his last breath, he uttered his final words.
"Why...did you never even glance at Xinghe?"
"Master..."
Mu Zhe knelt silently before Yu Xinghe's gradually cooling body for a long time before finally wiping away his tears and pulling Lin Xia Chun from Yu Xinghe's chest.
He buried Yu Xinghe's body, thus fulfilling their final bond as fellow disciples.
Then Mu Zhe leaped off the cliff of Yuxu Mountain on Liren Peak, braving the biting winds that even a Mahayana cultivator could hardly withstand, and trudged towards the icy plains.
Only savage beasts could survive in the icy plains.
Mu Zhe, relying on Shen Feng Xue's yuandan, searched inch by inch across the vast icy plains. After an unknown amount of time, he finally found Shen Feng Xue.
Shen Feng Xue was still dressed in white, his eyelashes slightly lowered, a fire spirit stone with a crookedly engraved "Yu" character in his palm, melting the oncoming wind and snow into frost.
That spirit stone was Yu Xinghe's way of saving face for Shen Feng Xue in the end, preventing him from being left to rot in the wilderness, devoured by wild beasts.
He lay on the vast icy plains, his gaze fixed on the ever-burning lamp on Yuxu Mountain.
The lamp of parting burned eternally; he died in a snowstorm.
T-T
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